Oracle DBA practicals for beginers

	This Blog contains all the basic practicals that an aspiring Oracle DBA should perform before stepping out in the world of Oracle Database Administration.These practical topics are prepared based on my own learnings for the past 9 years as an Oracle DBA
1	significance of various rpms required
2	significance of various kernel parameters
3	significance of oracle user,groups
4	Set different environment variables
5	location of tnanames.ora depending upon TNS_ADMIN
6	Significance of /etc/oratab
7	enabling and disabling automatic database startup
8	understanding various options inside response file
9	software installation silently using runinstaller
10	significance of oraInventory
11	create database using DBCA in silent mode
12	creating database manually using create database command
13	significance of catalog and cataproc scripts
14	Fetch data from any dictionary view before running catalog or cataproc scripts
15	try and connect to Db without listener
16	setting password for listener
17	checking the services status of the listener using lsnrctl
18	connection of sys user without password file
19	easy connect method from a client machine
20	connection using tnsnames from any client machine
21	drop the dba os group and run sqlplus / as sysdba
22	connectivity with and without sqlnet.ora
23	starting database using pfile and spfile
24	changing parameters in spfile and pfile and understand various parameters
25	alter system,alter database,alter session
26	enabling disabling autoextension for tablespaces
27	providing segment and extent info while creating tablespace
28	adding space to database by increasing datafile size
29	adding space to database by adding datafile
30	setting the limit for maximum datafiles in databse
31	database startup stages
32	database shutting down options and significance
33	starting the db in various modes like upgrade,read only etc
34	changing temporay tablespace
35	change dbname,dbid,db unique name
36	change location of archive location
37	set various formats for archive log naming
38	create a role
39	create a role having password
40	creating a database link
41	creating a profile
42	creating a profile for the password settings;
43	creating and deleting an index
44	dba_,all_ and user_ type views
45	setting various nls parameters
46	expiring the user password after sometime
47	giving one users table privileges to another user-role
48	creat synonym public and normal
49	giving tablespace during user creation
50	granting all privileges on a table to an user
51	granting one role to another
52	granting profile to a user at the time of creation of the user
53	granting restricted session
54	granting two roles to a user
55	getting information about character sets and setting characterset
56	renaming the tablespace
57	kill session command
58	setting tablespace quota for any user
59	switching the undo_tablespace from one another
60	use of systimestamp,sysdate etc
61	viewing privileges of any user and changing them
62	grant various privegeles to user
63	revoke various privegeles from user
64	backup of database full,lv 0,lv1 incremental,lv1 commulative
65	backup of datafile
66	backup of archivelog
67	taking backup to any location of chaoice
68	rman show all command and all the rman parameters
69	backup of the controlfile to a particular location
70	delete input and its significance
71	crosschecking the backups using rman
72	expired and obselete backup
73	backup using export and various parameters of expdp
74	backup of controlfile in a sql script
75	backup of a particular tablespace using RMAN
76	backup of backupset
77	starting user managed backup using begin backup command
78	ending user managed backup using end backup command
79	rman list command
80	rman report command
81	RMAN compressed backup
82	rman delete command
83	understanding rman channel
84	rman show command
85	rman backup in nomount,mount,open mode..possible or not?
86	recover a spfile
87	recover a controlfile
88	recover a datafile
89	recover different files to different locations
90	remove the current temporary tablespace and understand the changes
91	recove if current redolog gets deleted/corrupted
92	recove if non current redolog gets deleted/corrupted
93	recover to a particular time
94	recover a whole database(complete disaster recovery) to same file system
95	recover a whole database(complete disaster recovery) to different file system
96	recover from export backup
97	importing a schema
98	importing a table
99	importing a user from one tablespace to another
100	recover till a required SCN
101	try only restore and open the database
102	RMAN run command for incomplete recovery until time
103	dropping a missing datafile
104	effect of resetlogs option
105	How to enable flashback in 11g
106	flashback database
107	flashback database by using restore point(have to down the db)
108	flashback logs information
109	Flashback Query
110	flashback table delete
111	flashback table drop
112	Flashback transaction
113	how RMAN recovery happens?
114	importing a role
115	recovery in case of loss of archive log file
116	creation of recovery catalog
117	maintenance of recovery catalog
118	auditing the database
119	AWR report generation using awrrpt.sql
120	changing the sna[shot taking time
121	playing with baseline
122	compiling database objects
123	creating a clone database using RMAN backup
124	creating a clone database without RMAN backup
125	patching a databse manually using opatch
126	applying one off
127	rollback the applied patch
128	create standby using backup
129	create standby using rman duplicate
130	creating standby using file copy
131	upgrading a database
132	downgrading a database
133	dropping a missing datafile
134	recyclebin usage
135	renaming a database
136	changing dbid of a database
137	steps to load data using sqlldr
138	transporting a tablespace
139	using logminer
140	understanding ADDM
141	understading ADR
142	data recovery advisor
143	database replay
144	dropping a database
145	flashback archive
146	segment advisor
147	SQL access advisor
148	SQL performance analyser
149	SQL plan baseline
150	SQL tuning advisor
151	SQL tuning set
152	table shrinking
153	total recall
154	databagurd broker
155	virtual column

OEM default ports required to be open

These are the default ports which should be open for OEM12c to work properly

Enterprise Manager Upload Http Port=4889

Enterprise Manager Upload Http SSL Port=4900

Enterprise Manager Central Console Http SSL Port=7799

Node Manager Http SSL Port=7403

Managed Server Http Port=7202

Enterprise Manager Central Console Http Port=7788

Oracle Management Agent Port=3872

Admin Server Http SSL Port=7101

Managed Server Http SSL Port=7301

Step by Step Migration Document OEM 12c to 13c on RHEL 6.8

 

Step by Step Migration  Document OEM 12c to 13c on RHEL 6.8

 

We will do the OEM migration from OEM12c running on 11203 database as OMR to OEM 13c with 12102 as OMR using two step approach and with minimum downtime

 

1.       PHASE 1 CLONING OF EXISTING OEM

2.       PHASE 2 MIGRATION OF  OEM FROM 12c TO 13c

 

 

So lets get started

 

PHASE 1 CLONING OF EXISTING OEM

 

Take the RMAN backup of OMR



run {

backup incremental level 0 database plus archivelog;

backup current controlfile;

sql 'alter system switch logfile';

backup archivelog all;

}

 

 Take OMS configuration backup



emctl exportconfig oms -sysman_pwd <sysman password>  -dir <directory to take backup>

 

Start preparing the new OEM server

 

Prepare the new server where you want to make a clone of your existing OEM,the directory structure is recommended to be same as the old server

 

Install 11203 database software in new server

 

Install 12102 database software in new server

 

Copy the files from old server to new server

 

• Copy config backup
• Copy OEM12c software from old server
• Copy the RMAN backups
• Copy software library files
• Copy tns files

 Unzip the OEM12c software on new server

 

unzip em12103p1_linux64_disk1.zip

unzip em12103p1_linux64_disk2.zip

unzip em12103p1_linux64_disk3.zip

 

Create a new database 11203 on new server (this database would be used by OMS installer to create the configuration)


Check the database password and connection before proceeding further

 

orapwd file=$ORACLE_HOME/dbs/orapw$ORACLE_SID force=y password=<sys_password>

 

 

Create pfile based on the pfile from old server and make necessary changes

Make changes to listener files as well

 

Start the listener

 

Create database

 

Startup nomount

 

 

CREATE DATABASE <DB_NAME>

   USER SYS IDENTIFIED BY <sys password>

   USER SYSTEM IDENTIFIED BY <sysman password>

   LOGFILE GROUP 1 ('/<location>/redo01.log') SIZE 1024M,

           GROUP 2 ('/<location>/redo02.log') SIZE 1024M,

           GROUP 3 ('/<location>/redo03.log') SIZE 1024M

   MAXLOGFILES 5

   MAXLOGMEMBERS 5

   MAXLOGHISTORY 1

   MAXDATAFILES 500

   CHARACTER SET AL32UTF8

   NATIONAL CHARACTER SET AL16UTF16

   EXTENT MANAGEMENT LOCAL

   DATAFILE '/<location>/system01.dbf' SIZE 6G REUSE AUTOEXTEND ON

   SYSAUX DATAFILE '/<location>/sysaux01.dbf' SIZE 5G REUSE AUTOEXTEND ON

   DEFAULT TABLESPACE <tablespace name>

      DATAFILE '/<location>/dbfile.dbf'

      SIZE 1G REUSE AUTOEXTEND ON MAXSIZE UNLIMITED

   DEFAULT TEMPORARY TABLESPACE temp

      TEMPFILE '/<location>/temp01.dbf'

      SIZE 1G REUSE AUTOEXTEND ON

   UNDO TABLESPACE UNDOTBS1

      DATAFILE '/<location>/undo01.dbf'

      SIZE 1G REUSE AUTOEXTEND ON MAXSIZE UNLIMITED;

 

@?/rdbms/admin/catalog.sql

@?/rdbms/admin/catproc.sql

 

as system user

  

conn system/<sysman password>

 

@?/sqlplus/admin/pupbld.sql

  

Check the database password and connection before proceeding further

 

orapwd file=$ORACLE_HOME/dbs/orapw$ORACLE_SID force=y password=<sys password>

 

 Install OMS silently only software

•  Check prerequisites

 

Go to the location where you unzipped the12c software

 

cd /<location>/install/requisites/bin

 

./emprereqkit -executionType install  -prerequisiteXMLLoc /<location>/install/requisites/list  -dbHost <db host name>  -dbPort <listener port> -dbSid <db sid> -dbUser SYS -dbPassword <sys password> -dbRole sysdba -reposUser sysman  -runPrerequisites

 

To run the corrective actions by itself run the above command with the below parameter

 

-runCorrectiveActions

•  Install 12103 OMS software silently

 

Edit the software_only.rsp response file with the below parameters

 

cd /<location>/response

 

UNIX_GROUP_NAME="dba"

INVENTORY_LOCATION="/opt/oracle/oraInventory" 

SECURITY_UPDATES_VIA_MYORACLESUPPORT=FALSE

DECLINE_SECURITY_UPDATES=TRUE

ORACLE_MIDDLEWARE_HOME_LOCATION="/<location>"

AGENT_BASE_DIR="/<location>"

ORACLE_HOSTNAME="<db server name>"

 

 

Install the software silently

 

cd /<location>

 

./runInstaller -silent -responseFile /<location>/software_only.rsp

 

 

•  Configure OMS with OMR

 

Before configuring make the following changes in staticports.ini file and make sure that the ports are free

 

 

Enterprise Manager Upload Http Port=4889

Enterprise Manager Upload Http SSL Port=4900

Enterprise Manager Central Console Http SSL Port=7799

Node Manager Http SSL Port=7403

Managed Server Http Port=7202

Enterprise Manager Central Console Http Port=7788

Oracle Management Agent Port=3872

Admin Server Http SSL Port=7101

Managed Server Http SSL Port=7301

 

Change the new_install.rsp file with correct values as follows

 

  

UNIX_GROUP_NAME="dba"

INVENTORY_LOCATION="/opt/oracle/oraInventory"

SECURITY_UPDATES_VIA_MYORACLESUPPORT=FALSE

DECLINE_SECURITY_UPDATES=TRUE

ORACLE_MIDDLEWARE_HOME_LOCATION="/<location>"

AGENT_BASE_DIR="/<location>"

ORACLE_HOSTNAME="<hostname>"

WLS_ADMIN_SERVER_USERNAME="weblogic"

WLS_ADMIN_SERVER_PASSWORD="<weblogic password>"

WLS_ADMIN_SERVER_CONFIRM_PASSWORD="<weblogic password>"

NODE_MANAGER_PASSWORD="<nodemanager password>"

NODE_MANAGER_CONFIRM_PASSWORD="<nodemanager password>"

ORACLE_INSTANCE_HOME_LOCATION="/<location>" CONFIGURE_ORACLE_SOFTWARE_LIBRARY=false

DATABASE_HOSTNAME="<hostname>"

LISTENER_PORT="<listener port>"

SERVICENAME_OR_SID="<service name>"

SYS_PASSWORD="<sys password>”

SYSMAN_PASSWORD="<sysman password>"

SYSMAN_CONFIRM_PASSWORD="<sysman password>"

MANAGEMENT_TABLESPACE_LOCATION="/<location>/mgmt.dbf"

CONFIGURATION_DATA_TABLESPACE_LOCATION="/<location>/mgmt_ecm_depot1.dbf"

JVM_DIAGNOSTICS_TABLESPACE_LOCATION="/<location>/mgmt_deepdive.dbf"

AGENT_REGISTRATION_PASSWORD="<agent password>"

AGENT_REGISTRATION_CONFIRM_PASSWORD="<agent password>"

STATIC_PORTS_FILE="/<location>/staticports.ini"

 

Now configure the OMS with OMR

 

cd /$OMS_HOME/sysman/install

 

sh ConfigureGC.sh -silent -responseFile /<location>/response/new_install.rsp

 

After installation secure the oms

 

emctl secure oms

 

emctl stop oms -all –force

 

emctl start oms

 

After the successful securing of OMS check the details

 

emctl status oms -details

 

emctl config oms -list_repos_details

 

 

now at this stage you will get OEM12 on new server which will be a clean slate OEM

 

Make new OMS a clone of old

•  Clone the database using RMAN backup—in simple words do a refresh of the OMR from the RMAN backup taken above

 

After the successful refresh you will get a functional cloned OMR

 

•  Reconfigure the oms with the backup

  

omsca recover -as -ms -nostart -backup_file /<location>/opf_ADMIN_<OMSBACKUP>.bka

 

at this stage you may get these errors

 

1.       Instance directory not empty:-Clean the OMS instance home directory

2.       There is another configuration which we just installed:-follow the below steps

 

rename emInstanceMapping.properties in <OMS_HOME>/sysman/config/

 

mv emInstanceMapping.properties emInstanceMapping.propertiesbak

 

and retry the reconfiguration..again you will get plugin related errors so follow these steps

 

•  Install the plugins before reconfiguring OMS with the backup

  

cd /<OMS_HOME>/sysman/install

 

sh PluginInstall.sh -silent -pluginLocation /<downloaded location>/plugins

 

You can also install the missing plugins by this way

  

sh PluginInstall.sh -silent PLUGIN_SELECTION="{<plugin 1>,<plugin 2>}"

 

After every plugin was installed fire the below command

 

omsca recover -as -ms -nostart -backup_file /<location>/opf_ADMIN_<OMSBACKUP>.bka

  

After the successful configuration just resecure oms

 

$OMS_HOME/bin/emctl secure oms

 

Restart the OMS (Secure OMS requires to restart the OMS)

 

$OMS_HOME/bin/emctl stop oms -all -force

 $OMS_HOME/bin/emctl start oms

 

emctl config oms -list_repos_details

 

 

At this moment you can see that this OEM is pointing to OMR of new server..hence from console you will get 2 OMS servers running from single OMR..this is actualy the HA of OMS

 

•  Pointing new OMS to point to newly refreshed database running from new server

 

emctl config oms -store_repos_details -repos_conndesc "(DESCRIPTION=(ADDRESS_LIST=(ADDRESS=(PROTOCOL=TCP)(HOST=<hostname>)(PORT=<port>)))(CONNECT_DATA=(SID=<sid>)))" -repos_user sysman

 

 

Now again follow the resecuring of OMS

 

$OMS_HOME/bin/emctl secure oms

 

Restart the OMS (Secure OMS requires to restart the OMS)

 

$OMS_HOME/bin/emctl stop oms -all -force

 $OMS_HOME/bin/emctl start oms

 

 also check the details of OMS and OMR

 

emctl status oms -details

 

 

At this moment just check the details from both old and new OEM..they should ideally be pointing to different OMR..if not then make sure OEM in old server should connect to the database of old server and also check the jobs..if jobs are getting in scheduled state then just restart the OEM of old server

 

 

At this stage if you check OEM console you can see that all the targets in new OEM is unreachable..this is because the targets are still pointing to old OEM and that is still running fine

 

At this stage the cloning of existing OEM is complete and we can move to the migration phase

 

PHASE 2 MIGRATION OF  OEM FROM 12c TO 13c

 

Migration of OMR from 11203 to 12102

 

Do the migration of database as a simple 12c migration and do the following

• Check patch status and make sure all the latest patches are installed
• enable autoextention on all the tablespaces
• And add sufficient space in each DBFIELE
• Attach the oracle home if needed

  

After the successful DB migration just restart OMS and at this point the OMS is 12103 and OMR is 12102





Migration of OMS to 13100



 Copy the 13c software to the server and give desired permissions

 

 Change the following DB settings/parameters

 

NOTE:-BEFORE CHANGING DB PARAMTER MAKE A NOTE OF OLDER PARAMTERS

 

show parameter adaptive;
grant execute on dbms_random to dbsnmp;
alter system set optimizer_adaptive_features=false scope=both;
alter system set compatible='12.1.0.2.0' scope=spfile;
alter system set job_queue_processes=0 scope=spfile;
alter system set parallel_max_servers=8 scope=spfile;
alter system set parallel_min_servers=0 scope=spfile;

shu immediate;
startup
show parameter adaptive;

show parameter compat;

BEFORE STARTING THE MIGRATION JUST CHANGE THE PASSWORDS OF ALL THE USERS

Refer the following doc

12c , 13c Cloud Control: Steps for Modifying the Password for Weblogic and Nodemanager User Accounts in the Enterprise Manager Installation (Doc ID 1450798.1)

Changing sysman password :

alter user sysman identified by "<new password>";



emctl config oms -change_repos_pwd -use_sys_pwd -sys_pwd <sys password> -new_pwd <new password>

Again restart oms

Take backup of OMR and OMS

•Take RMAN backup for OMR

run {

backup incremental level 0 database plus archivelog;

backup current controlfile;

sql 'alter system switch logfile';

backup archivelog all;

}

• Taking configuration backup of OMS

 emctl exportconfig oms -sysman_pwd <sysman password>  -dir <directory to take backup>



Seting REPO key in the repository



emctl config emkey -copy_to_repos



emctl status emkey



Run prerequisites

 Run the prereq script and solve the pending issues



./em13100_linux64.bin -silent EMPREREQ_KIT=true EMPREREQKIT_PROPERTY_FILE=/<location to file>/emprereqkit.rsp



installerMode=emprereqkit

connectString=(DESCRIPTION=(ADDRESS_LIST=(ADDRESS=(PROTOCOL=TCP)(HOST=<hostname>)(PORT=<port>)))(CONNECT_DATA=(SERVICE_NAME=<Service name>)))

dbPassword=<sys password>

dbRole=sysdba

dbUser=SYS

executionType=upgrade

logLoc=/<location of log>

prereqResultLoc=/<location of loc>

reposUser=SYSMAN

runPrerequisites=true

runCorrectiveActions=true



Rerun the above script without corrective action to check the final status



Stop all the components of OMS which includes WebTier, OMS and AdminServer before migrating the OMS.



emctl stop oms –all



emctl stop agent





Generating the Response File for Silent Installation



Invoke the installer and generate the response file you need to use for performing a silent upgrade:



./em13100_linux64.bin -getResponseFileTemplates -outputLoc <location of response files>



If you are installing this on RHEL 6.8 then there is another BUG..Installer dsnt support 6.8

You can overcome this by looking in /etc for any files named *release*. Then use vi to modify it to an OS on the approved list. For example, /etc/redhat-release will contain that version number. Modify it to be an approved version, install, then change the file back.



After everything is done just change /etc/redhat-release with correct values



Perform silent installation of oem13c software only

Edit the software_only.rsp with the below parameters



UNIX_GROUP_NAME="dba"

INVENTORY_LOCATION="/opt/oracle/oraInventory"

ORACLE_MIDDLEWARE_HOME_LOCATION="<MW_HOME> "

AGENT_BASE_DIR="<AGENT_BASE_DIRECTORY>"

ORACLE_HOSTNAME="<hostname>"



./em13100_linux64.bin -silent -responseFile /<location of response files>/software_only.rsp



Follow the below steps to overcome a bug



 1. Restore the OEM environment from backup prior to starting the 13c upgrade process.

 2. Perform the 13c software-only installation.

 3  Take a backup of the file <13c_MIDDLEWARE_HOME>/sysman/admin/emdrep/sql/core/13.1.0.0/cost_center/cost_center_data_upgrade.sql.

 4. Remove following line from the file <13c_MIDDLEWARE_HOME>/sysman/admin/emdrep/sql/core/13.1.0.0/cost_center/cost_center_data_upgrade.sql:

        Rem drv: <migrate type="data_upgrade" version="13.1.0.0" />

   Save the file.

5. Start the 13c upgrade by running:

<13c_MIDDLEWARE_HOME>/sysman/install/ConfigureGC.sh



Configure the OMS for the upgrade on new server

Edit the upgrade.rsp with the below parameters (note the # parameters)

 

UNIX_GROUP_NAME="dba"

INVENTORY_LOCATION="/opt/oracle/oraInventory"

DECLINE_SECURITY_UPDATES=true

#MYORACLESUPPORT_USERNAME=<string>

#MYORACLESUPPORT_PASSWORD=<string>

#STAGE_LOCATION=<string>

#MYORACLESUPPORT_USERNAME_FOR_SOFTWAREUPDATES=<string>

#MYORACLESUPPORT_PASSWORD_FOR_SOFTWAREUPDATES=<string>

ORACLE_MIDDLEWARE_HOME_LOCATION="<MW_HOME> "

ORACLE_INSTANCE_HOME_LOCATION="<MW_HOME> /gc_inst"

OLD_BASE_DIR="<OLD_MW_HOME> "

ORACLE_HOSTNAME="<hostname>"

AGENT_BASE_DIR="<AGENT_BASE_DIRECTORY>"

#OLD_DATABASE_CONNECTION_DESCRIPTION=<string>

#OLD_DATABASE_SYSMAN_PASSWORD=<string>

WLS_ADMIN_SERVER_USERNAME="Weblogic"

WLS_ADMIN_SERVER_PASSWORD="<Weblogic password>"

WLS_ADMIN_SERVER_CONFIRM_PASSWORD="<Weblogic password>"

NODE_MANAGER_PASSWORD="<nodemanager password>"

NODE_MANAGER_CONFIRM_PASSWORD="<nodemanager password>"

WLS_ADMIN_SERVER_PASSWORD="<Weblogic password>"

#JVM_DIAGNOSTICS_TABLESPACE_LOCATION=<string>

DATABASE_HOSTNAME="<hostname>"

LISTENER_PORT="<port>"

SERVICENAME_OR_SID="<sid>"

SYS_PASSWORD="<sys password>"

SYSMAN_PASSWORD="<Sysman password>"

REPOSITORY_BACKUP_DONE=true

CONFIGURE_SHARED_LOCATION_BIP=true

CONFIG_LOCATION="<location>/config"

CLUSTER_LOCATION="<location>/cluster"

ENABLE_BI_PUBLISHER=TRUE



cd /<OMS HOME>/sysman/install/



ConfigureGC.sh -silent -responseFile /<location>/upgrade.rsp

 



Installing Agent



Logon to your OEM Server and issue the following commands to generate the agentdeploy script



emcli login -username=sysman -password=<sysman password>

emcli sync

emcli get_supported_platforms



emcli get_agentimage -destination=/<location>/agentimage  -platform="Linux x86-64" -version=13.1.0.0.0



./agentDeploy.sh AGENT_BASE_DIR=<AGENT_BASE_DIRECTORY> OMS_HOST=<hostname>  EM_UPLOAD_PORT=4900 AGENT_REGISTRATION_PASSWORD=<password> AGENT_PORT=3872

Now copy these image files to each target server and install the OEM13c agent..at this stage one by one all of your targets start pointing to new OEM13c and after migrating all targtes to point to 13c you can stop and say good bye to your old OEM i.e good old friend 12c

 

ORACLE RAC BEGINNERS GUIDE

ORACLE RAC

1)   ARCHITECTURE

1.1)         WHAT IS IT

Oracle RAC allows multiple computers to run Oracle RDBMS software simultaneously while accessing a single database, thus providing a clustered database.

In a non-RAC Oracle database, a single instance accesses a single database. The database consists of a collection of data files, control files, and redo logs located on disk. The instance comprises the collection of Oracle-related memory and operating system processes that run on a computer system.

In an Oracle RAC environment, two or more computers (each with an instance) concurrently access a single database. This allows an application or user to connect to either computer and have access to a single coordinated set of data.

1.2)         ARCHITECTURAL   OVERVIEW

THE ORACLE 10G RAC ARCHITECTURE

From the point of view of the installation, the main architecture of the RAC environment includes the following:

* Nodes or Servers

* Private Interconnect

* Vendor Supplied Cluster Manager or Cluster Software (Optional)

* Oracle provided Cluster Ready Services

* Shared Storage Subsystem

* Raw Partitions or Cluster File System or Network Attached Storage (NAS) or Automatic Storage Management (ASM)

* Public Network Connection

* Oracle Database software with RAC option

* Filesystem

1.2.1) Nodes or Hosts

The nodes or servers are the main platforms on which the Oracle RAC database is installed. The Cluster nodes range from a high-end powerful Sun Fire 15K to a low-end Linux server. They can also range from a mainframe grade IBM zSeries server to the emerging blade-server technologies such as IBM BladeCenter or Egenera. First, the appropriate operating system needs to be installed on the nodes. It is also important to choose the appropriate number of nodes while setting up the node operating environment.

1.2.2) Private Interconnect

The private interconnect is the physical construct that allows inter-node communication. It can be a simple crossover cable with UDP or it can be a proprietary interconnect with specialized proprietary communications protocol. When setting up more than 2- nodes, a switch is usually needed. This provides the maximum performance for RAC, which relies on inter-process communication between the instances for cache-fusion implementation.

1.2.3) Clusterware

Oracle Clusterware is software that enables servers to operate together as if they are one server. Each server looks like any standalone server.

Creating clusters involves installation of the cluster software on all nodes in the proposed cluster, as well as checking the configuration. The necessary tests need to be performed to verify the validity of the cluster. At the same time, the necessary software that controls the private interconnect is also installed and configured. With the availability of Oracle provided Cluster Ready Services (CRS), one can achieve a uniform and standard cluster platform. CRS is more than just cluster software, but it extends the high availability services in the cluster.

1.2.4) Shared Storage

The storage system provides an external common disk system accessible by all nodes of the cluster. The connection from the nodes to the disk sub-system is usually through a fiber switch or a SCSI connection. Once the storage volumes are presented to the hosts in the cluster, usually with the help of the logical volume manager, one can create volumes of suitable size for use in the RAC database. With the introduction of ASM methodology, the shared storage structures can be managed very easily. Once the disk groups are created with input of the disk devices, the ASM instances on each of the node in the cluster provide the shared storage resources to create the Database Files. The preparation of storage structures has been covered extensively in Chapter 5, Preparing Shared Storage.

1.2.5) Public Network

The clustered servers or hosts need to have public network connectivity so that client machines in the network can access the resources on the RAC system.

1.2.6) Virtual IP Address for CRS

Oracle 10g release supports the concept of Service, which can be assigned the Virtual IP address, and which float among the specified nodes. By creating the Virtual IP address(A virtual IP address (VIP or VIPA) is an IP address that is not connected to a specific computer or network interface card (NIC) on a computer. Incoming packets are sent to the VIP address, but they are redirected to physical network interfaces.VIPs are mostly used for connection redundancy; a VIP address may still be available if a computer or NIC fails because an alternative computer or NIC replies to connections.) and Virtual Host names, the applications get a sense of transparency in their connection to the RAC database service.

1.2.7) File systems

A regular single-instance database has three basic types of files: database software and dump files; datafiles, spfile, control files and log files, often referred to as "database files"; and it may have recovery files, if using RMAN. A RAC database has an additional type of file referred to as "CRS files". These consist of the Oracle Cluster Registry (OCR) and the voting disk. An Oracle RAC database can have up to

100 instances.

Depending on your platform, you can use the following file storage

options for Oracle RAC

■ ASM, which Oracle recommends

■ Oracle Cluster File System (OCFS), which is available for Linux and Windows

platforms, or a third-party cluster file system that is certified for Oracle RAC

■ A network file system

■ Raw devices

Oracle RAC databases differ architecturally from Oracle RACsingle-instance Oracle

databases in that each Oracle RAC database instance also has:

■ At least one additional thread of redo for each instance

■ An instance-specific undo tablespace

1.3)            ARCHITECHTURAL COMPONENTS

1.3.1) Private interconnect components

Oracle recommends that you configure a redundant interconnect to prevent the

interconnect from being a single point of failure. Oracle also recommends that you use

User Datagram Protocol (UDP) on a Gigabit Ethernet for your cluster interconnect.

Crossover cables are not supported for use with Oracle Clusterware or Oracle RAC

databases. All nodes in an Oracle RAC environment must connect to a Local Area Network(LAN) to enable users and applications to access the database. . Users can access an Oracle RAC database using a client-server configuration or through one or more middle tiers, with or without connection pooling. Users can be DBAs, developers, application users, power users, such as data miners who create their own searches, and so on. Most public networks typically use TCP/IP, but you can use any supported hardware and software combination. Oracle RAC database instances can be accessed through a database’s defined, default IP address and through VIP addresses.

In addition to the node’s host name and IP address, you must also assign a virtual host

name and an IP address to each node. The virtual host name or VIP should be used to

connect to the database instance. For example, you might enter the virtual host name

CRM in the address list of the tnsnames.ora file.

1.3.2) Oracle Clusterware components

The Oracle Clusterware requires two clusterware components: a voting

disk to record node membership information.Oracle RAC uses the voting disk to determine which instances are members of a cluster. The voting disk must reside on shared disk and the Oracle Cluster Registry (OCR) to record cluster configuration information. Maintains cluster configuration information as well as configuration information about any cluster database within the cluster.The OCR also manages information about processes that Oracle Clusterware controls. The voting disk and the OCR must reside on shared storage. The Oracle Clusterware can multiplex

the OCR and the voting disks and Oracle recommends that you use this feature to ensure cluster high availability.

The following list describes the functions of some of the major Oracle Clusterware components

Cluster Synchronization Services (CSS)—Manages the cluster configuration by

controlling which nodes are members of the cluster and by notifying members

when a node joins or leaves the cluster. If you are using third-party clusterware,

then the css process interfaces with your clusterware to manage node

membership information.

■ Cluster Ready Services (CRS)—The primary program for managing high

availability operations within a cluster. Anything that the crs process manages is

known as a cluster resource which could be a database, an instance, a service, a

Listener, a virtual IP (VIP) address, an application process, and so on. The crs

process manages cluster resources based on the resource’s configuration

information that is stored in the OCR. This includes start, stop, monitor and

failover operations. The crs process generates events when a resource status

changes. When you have installed Oracle RAC, crs monitors the Oracle instance,

Listener, and so on, and automatically restarts these components when a failure

occurs. By default, the crs process makes five attempts to restart a resource and

then does not make further restart attempts if the resource does not restart.

■ Event Management (EVM)—A background process that publishes events that

crs creates.

■ Oracle Notification Service (ONS)—A publish and subscribe service for communicating Fast Application Notification (FAN- FAN is a notification mechanism that Oracle RAC uses to notify other processes about configuration and service level information such as includes service status changes, such as UP or DOWN events) events.

■ RACG—Extends clusterware to support Oracle-specific requirements and

complex resources. Runs server callout scripts when FAN events occur.

■ Process Monitor Daemon (OPROCD)—This background process is locked in memory to monitor the cluster and provide I/O fencing. OPROCD performs its check, stops running, and if the wake up is beyond the expected time, then OPROCD resets the processor and reboots the node. An OPROCD failure results in Oracle Clusterware restarting the node

2)   REQUIREMENTS

2.1) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

Production and Test (RAC)

Oracle Enterprise Linux 5 update 2

Oracle Clusterware (Grid) Oracle Clusterware Release 2 (10.2.0.1.0)

Oracle ASM 11.2.0.2

Oracle Database  EE Oracle Database 10g Release 2 (10.2.0.1.0)

Development (Single Instance)

Oracle Enterprise Linux 5 update 2

Oracle ASM -- Grid Infrastructure 

Oracle Database EE Oracle Database 10g Release 2 (10.2.0.1.0)

2.2) TOOLS FOR INSTALLING,CONFIGURING AND MANAGING ORACLE RAC

The following is a description of the tools used for installing, configuring, and

managing an Oracle RAC database:

■ Oracle Universal Installer (OUI)–OUI installs the Oracle Clusterware and the

Oracle Database software with Oracle RAC. After you configure the nodes that

you want to use in your cluster, OUI installs the Oracle software on the specified

nodes using a network connection.

■ Cluster Verification Utility (CVU)–The CVU is a command-line tool that you can

use to verify a range of cluster and Oracle RAC components such as shared

storage devices, networking configurations, system requirements, and Oracle

Clusterware, as well as operating system groups and users. You can use the CVU

for preinstallation as well as postinstallation checks of your cluster environment.

The CVU is especially useful during preinstallation and during installation of

Oracle Clusterware and Oracle RAC components. OUI runs the CVU after the

Oracle Clusterware installation to verify your environment.

■ Oracle Enterprise Manager –Oracle Enterprise Manager has both the Database

Control and Grid Control graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for managing singleinstance and Oracle RAC environments.

■ Server Control (SRVCTL)–SRVCTL is a command-line interface that you can use

to manage an Oracle RAC database from a single point. You can use SRVCTL to

start and stop the database and instances, and to delete or move instances and

services. You can also use SRVCTL to add services and manage configuration

information. You use SVRCTL to start and stop a group of applications that

2.3) CHECKING REQUIREMENTS

Before you begin your installation, you should check to make sure that your system

meets the requirements for Oracle Real Application Clusters (RAC). The requirements

can be grouped into the following three categories:

■ Checking the Hardware Requirements

■ Network Requirements

■ Verifying the Installed Operating System and Software Requirements

2.3.1) Checking the Hardware Requirements

Each node that you want to make part of your Oracle Clusterware, or Oracle

Clusterware and Oracle RAC installation, must satisfy the minimum hardware

requirements of the software. These hardware requirements can be categorized as

follows:

■ Physical memory (at least 1 gigabyte (GB) of RAM)

■ Swap space (at least 2 GB of available swap space)

■ Temporary space (at least 400 megabytes (MB))

■ Processor type (CPU) that is certified with the version of the Oracle software being installed

These Oracle Clusterware components require the following additional disk space:

■ Two Oracle Clusterware Registry files, 256 MB each, or 512 MB total disk space

■ Three voting disk files, 256 MB each, or 768 MB total disk space

2.3.2) Network Requirements

The interconnect used by Oracle RAC is the same interconnect that Oracle Clusterware uses. This interconnect should be a private interconnect, meaning it is not be accessible by nodes that are not members of the cluster.

When you configure the network for Oracle RAC and Oracle Clusterware, each node

in the cluster must meet the following requirements:

■ Each node needs at least two network interface cards, or network adapters. One

adapter is for the public network and the other adapter is for the private network

used by the interconnect.

■ For the private network, the interconnect must support the user datagram protocol

(UDP) using high-speed network adapters and switches that support TCP/IP

(Gigabit Ethernet or better recommended).

■ You must have at least three IP addresses available for each node:

1. An IP address with an associated host name (or network name) for the public

interface.

2. A private IP address with a host name for each private interface.

3. One virtual IP address with an associated network name.

Public and Private interface names must be the same for all nodes

2.3.3) Verifying the Installed Operating System and Software Requirements

Operating system requirements

These requirements can include any of the following:

■ The operating system version

■ The kernel version of the operating system

■ Installed packages, patches, or patch sets

■ Installed compilers and drivers

■ Web browser type and version

■ Additional application software requirements

Operating system users and groups

The following operating system groups are used when installing Oracle software:

■ The OSDBA group (typically, dba) for Oracle Database authentication

■ The Oracle Inventory group (typically, oinstall) for all installations

■ (Optional) A separate OSASM group (for example, asm) for Automatic Storage

The following operating system users are required for all installations:

■ A user that owns the Oracle software (typically, oracle)

■ An unprivileged user (for example, the nobody user on Linux systems)

About Setting the Time on Both Nodes

Before starting the installation, ensure that the date and time settings on both nodes

are set as closely as possible to the same date and time. Oracle strongly recommends

using the Network Time Protocol (NTP) feature of most operating systems for this

purpose. All the nodes in your cluster should use the same reference NTP server.

About Deciding on a Shared Storage Solution

Each node in a cluster requires external shared disks for storing the Oracle

Clusterware (Oracle Cluster Registry and voting disk) files, and Oracle Database files.

The supported types of shared storage depend upon the platform you are using, for

example:

■ A supported cluster file system, such as OCFS2 for Linux, OCFS for Microsoft

Windows, or General Parallel File System (GPFS) on IBM platforms

■ Network file system (NFS), which is not supported on AIX Based Systems, Linux

on POWER, or on IBM zSeries Based Linux

■ Shared disk partitions consisting of block devices. Block devices are disk partitions

that are mounted using the Linux file system. Oracle Clusterware and Oracle RAC

write to these partitions directly.

■ Automatic Storage Management for Oracle Database files (strongly recommended)

Note: Oracle Clusterware files cannot be stored in ASM.it is only used to store the database files

Before you install Oracle Clusterware, you will need to configure 5 shared disk

partitions:

■ 1 partition which is 280 MB in size for storing the Oracle Cluster Registry (OCR)

■ 1 partition which is 280 MB in size for storing a duplicate OCR file on a different

disk, referred to as the OCR mirror

■ 3 partitions which are 280 MB in size, 1 for each voting disk location

About Choosing an Oracle Base Directory

Oracle Universal Installer (OUI) creates the Oracle base directory for you in the

location you specify. The Oracle base directory (ORACLE_BASE) acts as a top-level

directory for Oracle software installations. The file system that you use for the Oracle base directory must have at least 7 GB of available disk space for installing the Oracle Database software. The path to the Oracle base directory must be the same on all nodes. install Oracle RAC and ASM in separate home directories.

About Choosing an Oracle Clusterware Home Directory

OUI installs Oracle Clusterware into a directory structure referred to as CRS_home.

This home is separate from the home directories for other Oracle products installed on

the same server. OUI creates the CRS home directory for you. Before you start the

installation, you must have sufficient disk space on a file system for the Oracle

Clusterware directory, and the CRS home directory you choose should be owned by

the installation owner of Oracle Clusterware.

The file system that you use for the CRS home directory must have at least 2 GB of

available disk space. The path to the CRS home directory must be the same on all

nodes.

3)   INSTALLATION

3.1) INSTALLING AND CONFIGURING ORACLE CLUSTERWARE AND ORACLE RAC

This chapter includes the following sections:

■ Preparing the Oracle Media Installation File

■ Installing Oracle Clusterware

■ Configuring Automatic Storage Management in an ASM Home Directory

■ Installing the Oracle Database Software and Creating a Cluster Database

■ Performing Postinstallation Tasks

3.1.1) Preparing the Oracle Media Installation File

OUI installs Oracle Clusterware into a directory structure that is referred to as CRS_home. the standard Oracle Database 10g software installation

process installs the Oracle RAC option when OUI recognizes that you are performing

the installation on a cluster. OUI installs Oracle RAC into a directory structure that is

referred to as Oracle_home.

3.1.2) Installing Oracle Clusterware

The following topics describe the process of installing Oracle Clusterware:

■ Configuring the Operating System Environment

■ Verifying the Configuration Using the Cluster Verification Utility

■ Using Oracle Universal Installer to Install Oracle Clusterware

■ Completing the Oracle Clusterware Configuration

3.1.2.1) Configuring the Operating System Environment

You run OUI from the oracle user account. Before you start OUI you must configure

the environment of the oracle user. You must set the ORACLE_BASE environment

variables to the directory in which you want the Oracle central inventory files located. Prior to installing the Oracle Database software and creating an Oracle database, you

should also set the ORACLE_HOME environment variable to the location in which you

want to install the Oracle Database software

To modify the user environment prior to installing Oracle Clusterware on Red

Hat Linux:

1. As the oracle user, execute the following commands:

[oracle]$ unset ORACLE_HOME

[oracle]$ unset ORACLE_SID

[oracle]$ unset ORACLE_BASE

[oracle]$ export ORACLE_BASE=/opt/oracle/11gR1

2. Verify the changes have been made by executing the following commands:

[oracle]$ echo $ORACLE_SID

[oracle]$ echo $ORACLE_HOME

[oracle]$ echo $ORACLE_BASE

/opt/oracle/11gR1

To modify the user environment prior to installing Oracle Database on Red Hat

Linux:

1. As the oracle user, modify the user profile in the /home/oracle directory on

both nodes using the following commands:

[oracle] $ cd $HOME

[oracle] $ vi .bash_profile

Add the following lines at the end of the file:

export ORACLE_SID=sales

export ORACLE_BASE=/opt/oracle/11gR1

export ORACLE_HOME=/opt/oracle/11gR1/db

2. Read and implement the changes made to the .bash_profile file:

source .bash_profile

3. Verify the changes have been made by executing the following commands:

[oracle]$ echo $ORACLE_SID sales

[oracle]$ echo $ORACLE_HOME /opt/oracle/11gR1/db

[oracle]$ echo $ORACLE_BASE /opt/oracle/11gR1

3.1.2.2) Verifying the Configuration Using the Cluster Verification Utility

If you have not configured your nodes, network, and operating system correctly, your

installation of the Oracle Clusterware or Oracle Database 11g software will not

complete successfully

To verify your hardware and operating system setup:

1. As the oracle user, change directories to the staging directory for the Oracle

Clusterware software

[oracle] $ cd /staging_area

2. Run the runcluvfy.sh script, as shown in the following example, where

docrac1 and docrac2 are the name of the nodes in your cluster:

[oracle] $ ./runcluvfy.sh stage -pre crsinst -n docrac1,docrac2 -verbose

3.1.2.3) Using Oracle Universal Installer to Install Oracle Clusterware

As the oracle user on the docrac1 node, install Oracle Clusterware

To install Oracle Clusterware:

1. Use the following command to start OUI, where staging_area is the location of

the staging area on disk, or the location of the mounted installation disk:

cd /staging_area/Disk1

./runInstaller

The Select a Product to Install window appears.

2. Select Oracle Clusterware from the list, then click Next.

3.Change the path for the inventory location, if required. Select oinstall for the

operating system group name. Click Next.

The path displayed for the inventory directory should be the oraInventory

subdirectory of your Oracle base directory. For example, if you set the

ORACLE_BASE environment variable to /opt/oracle/11gR1 before starting

OUI, then the path displayed is /opt/oracle/11gR1/oraInventory.

4. Accept the default value for the Name field, which is the name of the Oracle home

directory for this product. For the Path field, click Browse. In the Choose Directory

window Go up the path until you reach the root directory (/), click

/u01/app/crs, then click Choose Directory.

After you have selected the path, click Next. The next window, Product-Specific

Prerequisite Checks, appears after a short period of time.

5. When you see the message "Check complete. The overall result of this check is:

Passed", as shown in the following screenshot, click Next.

6. Change the default cluster name to a name that is unique throughout your entire

enterprise network. For example, you might choose a name that is based on the

node names' common prefix.

When you have finished removing the domain name in the "Modify a node in the

existing cluster" window, click OK.

7. When you are returned to the Specify Cluster Configuration window, click Add.

8. In the "Add a new node to the existing cluster" dialog window, enter the second

node's public name (docrac2.us.oracle.com), private name

(docrac2-priv), and virtual IP name (docrac2-vip.us.oracle.com), and

then click OK.

The Specify Cluster Configuration window now displays both nodes in the

Cluster Nodes.

9. Verify eth0 and eth1 are configured correctly (proper subnet and interface type

displayed), then click Next.

The Specify Oracle Cluster Registry (OCR) Location window appears.

10. Select Normal Redundancy for the OCR Configuration. You will be prompted for two file locations. In the Specify OCR Location field, enter the name of the device

configured for the first OCR file, for example, /dev/sda1.

In the Specify OCR Mirror Location field, enter the name of the device configured

for the OCR mirror file, for example /dev/sdb1. When finished, click Next.

During installation, the OCR data will be written to the specified locations.

11. Select Normal Redundancy for the voting disk location. You will be prompted for

three file locations. For the Voting Disk Location, enter the name of the device

configured for the first voting disk file, for example, /dev/sda2. Repeat this

process for the other two Voting Disk Location fields.

12. Review the contents of the Summary window and then click Install.

OUI displays a progress indicator during the installation process.

13. During the installation process, the Execute Configuration Scripts window

appears. Do not click OK until you have run the scripts.

The Execute Configuration Scripts window shows configuration scripts, and the

path where the configuration scripts are located. Run the scripts on all nodes as

directed, in the order shown. For example, on Red Hat Linux you perform the

following steps (note that for clarity, the examples show the current user, node and

directory in the prompt):

a. As the oracle user on docrac1, open a terminal window, and enter the

following commands:

[oracle@docrac1 oracle]$ cd /opt/oracle/11gR1/oraInventory

[oracle@docrac1 oraInventory]$ su

b. Enter the password for the root user, and then enter the following command

to run the first script on docrac1:

[root@docrac1 oraInventory]# ./orainstRoot.sh

c. After the orainstRoot.sh script finishes on docrac1, open another

terminal window, and as the oracle user, enter the following commands:

[oracle@docrac1 oracle]$ ssh docrac2

[oracle@docrac2 oracle]$ cd /opt/oracle/11gR1/oraInventory

[oracle@docrac2 oraInventory]$ su

d. Enter the password for the root user, and then enter the following command

to run the first script on docrac2:

[root@docrac2 oraInventory]# ./orainstRoot.sh

e. After the orainstRoot.sh script finishes on docrac2, go to the terminal

window you opened in Step 15a. As the root user on docrac1, enter the

following commands to run the second script, root.sh:

[root@docrac1 oraInventory]# cd /u01/app/crs

[root@docrac1 crs]# ./root.sh

At the completion of this script, the following message is displayed:

f. After the root.sh script finishes on docrac1, go to the terminal window

you opened in Step 15c. As the root user on docrac2, enter the following

commands:

[root@docrac2 oraInventory]# cd /u01/app/crs

[root@docrac2 crs]# ./root.sh

After the root.sh script completes, return to the OUI window where the Installer

prompted you to run the orainstRoot.sh and root.sh scripts. Click OK.

The Configuration Assistants window appears. When the configuration assistants

finish, OUI displays the End of Installation window.

14. Click Exit to complete the installation process, then Yes to confirm you want to

exit the installer.

If you encounter any problems, refer to the configuration log for information. The

path to the configuration log is displayed on the Configuration Assistants window.

3.1.2.4) Completing the Oracle Clusterware Configuration

To complete the Oracle Clusterware configuration on Red Hat Linux:

1. As the oracle user on docrac1, check the status of the Oracle Clusterware

targets by entering the following command:

/u01/app/crs/bin/crs_stat -t

This command provides output showing if all the important cluster services, such

as gsd, ons, and vip, are running on the nodes of your cluster.

3.1.3) Configuring Automatic Storage Management in an ASM Home Directory

This section explains how to install the ASM software in its own home directory.

Installing ASM in its own home directory enables you to keep the ASM home separate

from the database home directory (Oracle_home).

3.1.3.1) To install ASM in a home directory separate from the home directory used by Oracle Database:

1. Use the following commands to start OUI, where staging_area is the location

of the staging area on disk, or the location of the mounted installation disk:

cd /staging_area/database

./runInstaller

When you start Oracle Universal Installer, the Select a Product to Install window

appears.

2.       Select Oracle Database 11g from the list, then click Next.

The Select Installation Type window appears.

3. Select either Enterprise Edition or Standard Edition and then click Next.

4. In the Specify Home Details window, specify a name for the ASM home directory,

for example, OraASM11g_home. Select a directory that is a subdirectory of your

Oracle Base directory, for example, /opt/oracle/11gR1/asm. Click Browse to

change the directory in which ASM will be installed.

After you have specified the ASM home directory, click Next.

The Specify Hardware Cluster Installation Mode window appears.

5. Click Select All to select all nodes for installation, and then click Next.

If your Oracle Clusterware installation was successful, then the Specify Hardware

Cluster Installation Mode window lists the nodes that you identified for your

cluster, such as docrac1 and docrac2.

After you click Next, the Product-Specific Prerequisites Checks window appears.

6. When you see the message "Check complete. The overall result of this check is:

Passed", as shown in the following screenshot, click Next.

The Select Configuration Option window appears.

7. Select the Configure Automatic Storage Management (ASM) option to install and

configure ASM. The ASM instance is managed by a privileged role called SYSASM,

which grants full access to ASM disk groups.

Enter a password for the SYSASM user account. The passwords should be at least 8

characters in length and include at least one alphabetic and one numeric character.

Confirm the password by typing it in again in the Confirm ASM SYS Password

field.

When finished, click Next.

The Configure Automatic Storage Management window appears.

8. In the Configure Automatic Storage Management window, the Disk Group Name

defaults to DATA. You can enter a new name for the disk group, or use the default

name.

Check with your system administrator to determine if the disks used by ASM are

mirrored at the storage level. If so, select External for the redundancy. If the disks

are not mirrored at the storage level, then choose Normal for the redundancy.

9. At the bottom right of the Add Disks section, click Change Disk Discovery Path

to select any devices that will be used by ASM but are not listed.

In the Change Disk Discovery Path window, enter a string to use to search for

devices that ASM will use, such as /dev/sd*, and then click OK.

You are returned to the Configure Automatic Storage Management window.

10. Select the disks to be used by ASM, for example, /dev/sdd and /dev/sde

After you have finished selecting the disks to be used by ASM, click Next. The

Privileged Operating Systems Groups window appears.

11. Select the name of the operating system group you created in the previous chapter

for the OSDBA group, the OSASM group, and the database operator group. If you

choose to create only the dba group, then you can use that group for all three

privileged groups. If you created a separate asm group, then use that value for the

OSASM group.

After you have supplied values for the privileged groups, click Next. The Oracle

Configuration Manager Registration window appears.

12. The Oracle Configuration Manager Registration window enables you to configure

the credentials used for connecting to OracleMetaLink. You can provide this

information now, or configure it after the database has been installed. Click Next

to continue.

OUI displays the Summary window.

13. Review the information displayed in the Summary window. If any of the

information appears incorrect, then click Back to return to a previous window and

change it. When you are ready to proceed, click Install.

OUI displays a progress window indicating that the installation has started.

14. The installation takes several minutes to complete. During this time, OUI

configures ASM on the specified nodes, and then configures a listener on each

node.

After ASM has been installed, OUI runs the Configuration Assistants. When the

assistants have finished successfully, click Next to continue.

The Execute Configuration Scripts window appears.

15. Run the scripts as instructed in the Execute Configuration scripts window. For the

installation demonstrated in this guide, only one script, root.sh, must be run,

and it must be run on both nodes.

The following steps demonstrate how to complete this task on a Linux system

(note that for clarity, the examples show the user, node name, and directory in the

prompt):

a. Open a terminal window. As the oracle user on docrac1, change directories

to the ASM home directory, and then switch to the root user:

[oracle@docrac1 oracle]$ cd /opt/oracle/11gR1/asm

[oracle@docrac1 oracle]$ su

b. Enter the password for the root user, and then run the script specified in the

Execute Configuration scripts window:

[root@docrac1 oracle]# ./root.sh

c. As the root.sh script runs, it prompts you for the path to the local bin

directory. The information displayed in the brackets is the information it has

obtained from your system configuration. Press the Enter key each time you

are prompted for input to accept the default choices.

d. After the script has completed, the prompt appears. Open another terminal

window, and enter the following commands:

[oracle@docrac1 oracle]$ ssh docrac2

Enter the passphrase for key ’/home/oracle/.ssh/id_rsa’:

[oracle@docrac2 oracle]$ cd /opt/oracle/11gR1/asm

[oracle@docrac2 asm]$ su

Password:

e. Enter the password for the root user, and then run the script specified in the

Execute Configuration scripts window:

[root@docrac2 asm]# ./root.sh

f. Accept all default choices by pressing the Enter key.

g. After you finish executing the script on all nodes, return to the Execute

Configuration Scripts window and click OK to continue.

OUI displays the End of Installation window.

16. Review the information in the End of Installation window. The Web addresses

displayed are not used in this guide, but may be needed for your business

applications.

17. Click Exit, and then click Yes to verify that you want to exit the installation.

3.1.3.2) Verifying Your ASM Installation

Verify that all the database services for ASM are up and running.

To verify ASM is operational following the installation:

1. Change directories to the bin directory in the CRS home directory:

cd /u01/app/crs/bin

2. Run the following command as the oracle user, where docrac1 is the name of

the node you want to check:

./srvctl status asm -n docrac1

ASM instance +ASM1 is running on node docrac1.

The example output shows that there is one ASM instance running on the local

node.

3. Repeat the command shown in Step 2, substituting docrac2 for docrac1 to

verify the successful installation on the other node in your cluster.

3.1.4) Installing the Oracle Database Software and Creating a Cluster Database

The next step is to install the Oracle Database 11g Release 1 software on the docrac1

Node. Before you start OUI you must configure the environment of the oracle user. You

must set the ORACLE_SID, ORACLE_BASE, and ORACLE_HOME environment variables

to the desired values for your environment.

3.1.4.1) To install Oracle Database on your cluster:

1. As the oracle user, use the following commands to start OUI, where

staging_area is the location of the staging area on disk, or the location of the

mounted installation disk:

cd /staging_area/database

./runInstaller

When you start Oracle Universal Installer, the Select a Product to Install window

appears.

2. Select Oracle Database 11g from the list, then click Next.

The Select Installation Type window appears.

3. Select either Enterprise Edition or Standard Edition. The Enterprise Edition option

is selected by default. When finished, click Next.

The Install Location window appears.

4. Specify a name for the Oracle home, for example, OraDb11g_home.

5. Select an Oracle home directory that is a subdirectory of your Oracle base

directory, for example, /opt/oracle/11gR1/db_1.

You can click Browse to change the directory in which the Oracle Database

software will be installed. After you have selected the directory, click Choose

Directory to close the Choose Directory window.

If the directory does not exist, you can type in the directory path in the File Name

field, and then click Choose Directory. If a window appears asking if you want to

create the directory, click Yes.

After you have verified the information on the Install Location window, click

Next.

The Specify Hardware Cluster Installation Mode window appears.

6. Select the nodes on which the Oracle Database software will be installed. You can

also click Select All to select all available nodes. After you have selected the nodes

on which to install the Oracle Database software, click Next.

The Product-Specific Prerequisite Checks window appears.

7. When you see the confirmation message that your system has passed the

prerequisite checks, click Next.

The Select Configuration Option window appears.

8. In the Select Configuration Option window, accept the default option of Create a

Database and click Next.

The Select Database Configuration window appears.

9. Select one of the following different types of databases to be created:

■ General Purpose

■ Transaction Processing

■ Data Warehouse

■ Advanced (for customized database creation)

The General Purpose database type is selected by default. Select the type of

database that best suits your business needs. For the example used by this guide,

the default value is sufficient. After you have selected the database type, click

Next.

The Specify Database Configuration Options window appears.

10. In the Global Database Name field, enter a fully qualified name for your database,

such as sales.mycompany.com. Ensure that the SID field contains the first part

of the database name, for example, sales.

11. Check the settings on each of the tabs. If you are not sure what values to use, then

accept the default values. On the Sample Schemas tab, if you want sample data

and schemas to be created in your database, then select the Create database with

sample schemas option. When finished, click Next to continue.

The Select Database Management Option window appears.

12. By default, the Use Database Control for Database Management option is

selected instead of the Use Grid Control for Database Management option. The

examples in this guide use Database Control, which is the default value.

Do not select the option Enable Email Notifications if your cluster is not connected

to a mail server.

After you have made your selections, click Next.

The Specify Database Storage Option window appears.

13. If you configured ASM on the cluster, select the option Automatic Storage

Management (ASM) for the database storage. Otherwise, select File System and

enter the location of your shared storage, then click Next.

The Specify Backup and Recovery Options window appears.

14. Select the default option Do not enable Automated backup, and then click Next.

You can modify the backup settings at a later time.

If you selected ASM as your storage solution, the Select ASM Disk Group window

appears.

15. The Select ASM Disk Group window shows you where the database files will be

created. Select the disk group that was created during the ASM installation, and

then click Next.

The Specify Database Schema Passwords window appears.

16. Assign and confirm a password for each of the Oracle database schemas.

Unless you are performing a database installation for testing purposes only, do not

select the Use the same password for all the accounts option, as this can

compromise the security of your data. Each password should be at least 8

characters in length and include at least one alphabetic, one numeric, and one

punctuation mark character.

When finished entering passwords, click Next. OUI displays the Privileged

Operating System Groups window.

17. Select the name of the operating system group you created in the previous chapter

for the OSDBA group, the OSASM group, and the database operator group. If you

choose to create only the dba group, then you can use that group for all three

privileged groups. If you created a separate asm group, then use that value for the

OSASM group.

After you have supplied values for the privileged groups, click Next. The Oracle

Configuration Manager Registration window appears.

18. The Oracle Configuration Manager Registration window enables you to configure

the credentials used for connecting to OracleMetaLink. You can provide this

information now, or configure it after the database has been installed. Click Next

to continue.

OUI displays the Summary window.

19. Review the information displayed in the Summary window. If any of the

information is incorrect, click Back to return to a previous window and correct it.

When you are ready to proceed, click Install.

OUI displays a progress indicator to show that the installation has begun. This

step takes several minutes to complete.

20. As part of the software installation process, the sales database is created. At the

end of the database creation, you will see the Oracle Database Configuration

Assistant (DBCA) window with the URL for the Database Control console

displayed.

Make note of the URL, and then click OK. Wait for DBCA to start the cluster

database and its instances.

21. After the installation, you are prompted to perform the postinstallation task of

running the root.sh script on both nodes.

On each node, run the scripts listed in the Execute Configuration scripts window

before you click OK. Perform the following steps to run the root.sh script:

a. Open a terminal window. As the oracle user on docrac1, change directories

to your Oracle home directory, and then switch to the root user by entering

the following commands:

[oracle@docrac1 oracle]$ cd /opt/oracle/11gR1/db_1

[oracle@docrac1 db_1]$ su

b. Enter the password for the root user, and then run the script specified in the

Execute Configuration scripts window:

[root@docrac1 db_1]# ./root.sh

c. As the root.sh script runs, it prompts you for the path to the local bin

directory. The information displayed in the brackets is the information it has

obtained from your system configuration. Press the Enter key each time you

are prompted for input to accept the default choices.

d. After the script has completed, the prompt appears. Enter the following

commands:

[oracle@docrac1 oracle]$ ssh docrac2

[oracle@docrac2 oracle]$ cd /opt/oracle/11gR1/db_1

[oracle@docrac2 db_1]$ su

e. Enter the password for the root user, and then run the script specified in the

Execute Configuration scripts window:

[root@docrac2 db_1]# ./root.sh

f. Accept all default choices by pressing the Enter key.

After you finish executing the script on all nodes, return to the Execute

Configuration scripts window and click OK.

OUI displays the End of Installation window

22. Click Exit and then click Yes to verify that you want to exit OUI.

3.1.4.2) Verifying Your Oracle RAC Database Installation

At this point, you should verify that all the database services are up and running.

To verify the Oracle RAC database services are running:

1. Log in as the oracle user and go to the CRS_home/bin directory:

[oracle] $ cd /u01/app/crs/bin

2. Run the following command to view the status of the applications managed by

Oracle Clusterware:

[oracle] $ ./crs_stat –t

The output of the command should show that the database instances are available

(online) for each host.

3.1.4.3)  Configuring the Operating System Environment for Database Management

After you have installed the Oracle RAC software and created a cluster database, there

are two additional tasks to perform to configure your operating system environment

for easier database management:

■ Updating the oratab File

■ Reconfiguring the User Shell Profile

Updating the oratab File

Several of the Oracle Database utilities use the oratab file to determine the available

Oracle homes and instances on each node. The oratab file is created by the root.sh

script and is updated by Oracle Database Configuration Assistant when creating or

deleting a database.

The following is an example of the oratab file:

# This file is used by ORACLE utilities. It is created by root.sh

# and updated by the Database Configuration Assistant when creating

# a database.

# A colon, ':', is used as the field terminator. A new line terminates

# the entry. Lines beginning with a pound sign, '#', are comments.

#

# Entries are of the form:

# $ORACLE_SID:$ORACLE_HOME:<N|Y>:

#

# The first and second fields are the system identifier and home

# directory of the database respectively. The third field indicates

# to the dbstart utility that the database should, "Y", or should not,

# "N", be brought up at system boot time.

#

# Multiple entries with the same $ORACLE_SID are not allowed.

#

#

+ASM1:/opt/oracle/11gR1/asm:N

sales:/opt/oracle/11gR1/db_1:N

sales1:/opt/oracle/11gR1/db_1:N

To update the oratab file on Red Hat Linux after creating an Oracle RAC

database:

1. Open the /etc/oratab file for editing by using the following command on the

docrac1 node:

vi /etc/oratab

2. Add the Oracle_sid and Oracle_home for the local instance to the end of the

/etc/oratab file, for example:

sales1:/opt/oracle/11gR1/db_1:N

3. Save the file and exit the vi editor.

4. Modify the /etc/oratab file on each node in the cluster, adding in the

appropriate instance information.

Reconfiguring the User Shell Profile

There are several environment variables that can be used with Oracle RAC or Oracle

Database. These variables can be set manually in your current operating system

session, using shell commands such as set and export.

You can also have these variables set automatically when you log in as a specific

operating system user. To do this, modify the Bourne, Bash, or Korn shell

configuration file (for example .profile or .login) for that operating system user.

To modify the oracle user’s profile for the bash shell on Red Hat Linux:

1. As the oracle user, open the user profile in the /home/oracle directory for

editing using the following commands:

[oracle] $ cd $HOME

[oracle] $ vi .bash_profile

2. Modify the following lines in the file so they point to the location of the newly

created Oracle RAC database:

export ORACLE_BASE=/opt/oracle/11gR1

export ORACLE_HOME=/opt/oracle/11gR1/db_1

export PATH=$ORACLE_HOME/bin:$PATH

3. On each node, modify the .bash_profile file to set the ORACLE_SID

environment variable to the name of the local instance. For example, on the host

docrac1 you would add the following line to the .bash_profile file:

export ORACLE_SID=sales1

On the host docrac2 you would set ORACLE_SID to the value sales2.

4. Read and implement the changes made to the .bash_profile file on each

instance:

source .bash_profile

5. On each client computer, configure user access to use a service name, such as

sales, for connecting to the database.

3.1.5)  Performing Postinstallation Tasks

After you have installed the Oracle RAC software, there are additional tasks that you

can perform before your cluster database is ready for use. These steps are

recommended, but are not required.

This section contains the following topics:

■ About Verifying the Oracle Clusterware Installation

■ About Backing Up the Voting Disk

■ About Downloading and Installing RDBMS Patches

■ Verifying Oracle Enterprise Manager Operations

■ Recommended Postinstallation Tasks

3.1.5.1)  About Verifying the Oracle Clusterware Installation

After the Oracle Clusterware installation is complete, OUI automatically runs the

cluvfy utility as a Configuration Assistant to verify that the Clusterware installation

has been completed successfully.

If the CVU reports problems with your configuration, correct these errors before

proceeding.

3.1.5.2)  About Backing Up the Voting Disk

After your Oracle Database 11g with Oracle RAC installation is complete, and after

you are sure that your system is functioning properly, make a backup of the contents

of the voting disk. Use the dd utility, as described in the section "About Backing Up

and Recovering Voting Disks".

Also, make a backup copy of the voting disk contents after you complete any node

additions or deletions, and after running any deinstallation procedures.

3.1.5.3)  About Downloading and Installing RDBMS Patches

Periodically, Oracle issues bug fixes for its software called patches. Patch sets are a

collection of bug fixes that were produced up to the time of the patch set release. Patch

sets are fully tested product fixes. Application of a patch set affects the software

residing in your Oracle home.

Ensure that you are running the latest patch set of the installed software. You might

also need to apply patches that are not included in a patch set. Information about

downloading and installing patches and patch sets is covered in Chapter 10,

"Managing Oracle Software and Applying Patches".

3.1.5.4)  Verifying Oracle Enterprise Manager Operations

When you create an Oracle RAC database and choose Database Control for your

database management, the Enterprise Manager Database Control utility is installed

and configured automatically.

To verify Oracle Enterprise Manager Database Control has been started in your

new Oracle RAC environment:

1. Make sure the ORACLE_SID environment variable is set to the name of the

instance to which you want to connect, for example sales1. Also make sure the

ORACLE_HOME environment variable is set to the location of the installed Oracle

Database software.

$ echo $ORACLE_SID

sales

$ export ORACLE_SID=sales1

$ echo $ORACLE_HOME

/opt/oracle/11gR1/db_1

2. Go to the Oracle_home/bin directory.

3. Run the following command as the oracle user:

./emctl status dbconsole

The Enterprise Manager Control (EMCTL) utility displays the current status of the

Database Control console on the current node.

4. If the EMCTL utility reports that Database Control is not started, use the following

command to start it:

./emctl start dbconsole

5. Repeat Step 1 through Step 3 for each node in the cluster.

3.1.5.5)  Recommended Postinstallation Tasks

Oracle recommends that you complete the following tasks after installing Oracle RAC:

■ About Backing Up the root.sh Script

■ About Configuring User Accounts

About Backing Up the root.sh Script

Oracle recommends that you back up the root.sh script after you complete an

installation. If you install other products in the same Oracle home directory, OUI

updates the contents of the existing root.sh script during the installation. If you

require information contained in the original root.sh script, then you can recover it

from the root.sh backup copy.

About Configuring User Accounts

The oracle user operating system account is the account that you used to install the

Oracle software. You can use different operating system accounts for accessing and

managing your Oracle RAC database.

KEY TERMS

SWAP SPACE- Swap space is an area on disk that temporarily holds a process memory image. When physical memory demand is sufficiently low, process memory images are brought back into physical memory from the swap area on disk. Having sufficient swap space enables the system to keep some physical memory free at all times.

This type of memory management is often referred to as virtual memory and allows the total number of processes to exceed physical memory. Virtual memory enables the execution of a process within physical memory only as needed.

VIRTUAL IP-A virtual IP address (VIP or VIPA) is an IP address that is not connected to a specific computer or network interface card (NIC) on a computer. Incoming packets are sent to the VIP address, but they are redirected to physical network interfaces.VIPs are mostly used for connection redundancy; a VIP address may still be available if a computer or NIC fails because an alternative computer or NIC replies to connections

CACHE FUSION- Prior to Oracle 9, network-clustered Oracle databases used a storage device as the data-transfer medium (meaning that one node would write a data block to disk and another node would read that data from the same disk), which had the inherent disadvantage of lacklustre performance. Oracle 9i addressed this issue: RAC uses a dedicated network-connection for communications internal to the cluster.

Since all computers/instances in an RAC access the same database, the overall system must guarantee the coordination of data changes on different computers such that whenever a computer queries data it receives the current version — even if another computer recently modified that data. Oracle RAC refers to this functionality as Cache Fusion. Cache Fusion involves the ability of Oracle RAC to "fuse" the in-memory data cached physically separately on each computer into a single, global cache.

NTP(Network Time Protocol)- NTP is a protocol designed to synchronize the clocks of servers connected by a network.

RAW devices- a raw device is a special kind of block device file that allows accessing a storage device such as a hard drive directly, bypassing the operating system's caches and buffers (although the hardware caches might still be used). Applications like a Database management system can use raw devices